CBC Revenue Group

August 11, 2010   |   By Canadian Press

A 3D documentary on the Queen is set to air on CBC next month.

The public broadcaster said it will show Queen Elizabeth in 3D on Sept. 20 at 7 p.m.

A special TV is not needed to see the program, but viewers will require 3D glasses to experience the effects.

Free pairs will be available at Canada Post in early September. The CBC said that two million pairs will be up for grabs on a first-come, first-served basis.

A 3D crew followed the monarch during her recent visit to Canada to gather material for the film. That footage will be featured alongside archival colour 3D footage from 1953 and new material shot at Buckingham Palace.

The CBC is touting the project as the first 3D television broadcast to be shot and produced in Canada and transmitted nationally.

The network ran test footage unannounced at midnight ET Wednesday morning. The clips showed the Queen reviewing the Canadian naval fleet in Halifax, as well as attending Canada Day celebrations in Ottawa and the Queen's Plate in Toronto, all in 3D.

Select test viewers across the country were armed with 3D glasses for the test run and, according to the network, early reports were positive.

CBC released a comment from Jo-Anne Cameron of Spruce Grove, Alta., who said: "The Mounties really jumped out of the screen in 3D."

"Being able to see the Queen in a completely new way was amazing," she added. "The 3D picture of her surrounded by reporters was the most memorable-I felt like she was standing in my living room."

The test will be repeated several times in the next few weeks as CBC calibrates its transmitters.

The documentary will be followed by a broadcast of the Oscar-winning drama The Queen, starring Helen Mirren.

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